Abstract
Management development exercises aimed at passing on or scaffolding knowledge and skills in training programs are plentiful but exercises that can help change attitudes are in short supply. Role debate is a structured debating exercises where participants reconsider the way they think about important job-related issues. This article shows a case study where role debate enabled call agents to gain a greater grasp of their organization’s customer service policy. In role debates, participants, working in pairs, take up opposing stances on a given issue. After a few minutes debating, participants switch roles and argue the opposite to their initial stance. This allows for issues to be considered from many perspectives and for attitudes to adjust. Role debate has a wide applicability for teachers and facilitators in numerous settings. Instructions on how to design and conduct as well as several examples of role debates are given.
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